The Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces 龙脊梯田
The Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces are north of Gui Lin and take about 3-4 hours by mini-bus/van to get there. The mini-bus/van ride will give your stomach a serious motion sickness test. This is one of the rougher rides that you will have because the rice terraces are located in the mountains. If you get motion sickness definitely take something before taking this mini-bus ride.
How to get to the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces?
First, you need to reserve a seat on the mini-bus. Your hostel owner can help you with this. The mini-buses are located at the train station and will be marked by the destinations that they are going to. Before getting on the mini bus confirm that you are indeed supposed to be in this vehicle with the driver. He/she might not speak English, but they will have your name written down on a passenger list.
What time of year is should you go to the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces?
This all depends on what color you would like to see the rice terraces when you go. From April until about July the rice terraces will look like the pictures that you saw above, a brownish, goldish color. This is because the native people are still planting the rice.
If, you would like to see the rice terraces in a vibrant green color it would be best to go anywhere between August to October. The rice will have already been planted and will be in full bloom, making the rice terraces look breathtaking.
The Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces consists of three villages:
- Ping An (平安）
- Da Zhai (大寨）
- Tian Tou Zhai (田头寨）
About the three villages:
Ping An (平安)
It should be known that I have never been to Ping An before, though I have had friends (both western and Chinese) that have been there before and have spoken to some of the hostel owners about the differences between the villages. So, from speaking to them I am led to believe that Ping An sees the most tourist out of the three villages. The reason for this is because Ping An is a very picturesque place and some of the best pictures of the rice terraces can be taken there. The tradeoff is that you may be sacrificing some of the tranquility that can be found in the two other villages for the opportunity to take (possibly) better pictures.
Da Zhai (大寨）
Of all the places that I have been in China, Da Zhai was by far the least commercialized place. There were many people that lived their whole life in the mountains and villages that didn’t even speak Mandarin. Baidu Maps (the Chinese Google) was of no use while in Da Zhai. This made it difficult to find the hostel. Although being in such a remote area really made you feel like you were going off the beaten path. The walkways were by no means paved and it was very easy to get lost in the area. However, getting lost and exploring the rice terraces for an hour or two just adds to the fun in my opinion. Da Zhai is a very quiet place and the hostels are very spread out. This makes the stay at Da Zhai very peaceful.
Tian Tou Zhai （田头寨）
I don’t have much information about Tian Tou Zhai. All I know is what I’ve been told about it, which is that it is smaller than Ping An and Da Zhai and that it is not as good to photograph.
Getting the most out of your trip to the rice terraces and how long you should stay
I would recommend staying in the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces for at least 3 nights. This may sound like a long time to be there but not one minute of your time will be wasted.
First of all, you should know that the mini bus leaving from Gui Lin leaves at approximately 8 am. It is about a three to four-hour trip to the rice terraces. That will put you at an 1130 am- 1200 pm arrival time at your destination. I would recommend going to Da Zhai first. Now that doesn’t include the time that you will spend after you’ve been dropped off by the mini-bus looking for you lodging (remember maps and technology don’t work so well there in the mountains and the walking paths disappear sporadically. Optimistically, that will take you about 30 minutes, if you get lost or have trouble finding your lodging it may take you an hour. In short, you might not even be ready to explore the rice terraces until 1230 pm or 1 pm. The sun goes down a bit earlier when you’re in the mountains so you may only have about 4-5 hours to explore the rice terraces on the first day.
Day 1: What I suggest for Day 1 is to relax. You will have just had an arduous bus ride to get to the rice terraces and you may have gotten a bit sick on the ride over. So, on the first day make it a goal to see one or two of the sights (near your lodging) and just take it all in. You don’t need to make your vacation a test of your metal. Get back to your lodging and get to sleep early so that you can get the most out of Day 2.
Day 2: Wake up early… Like really early… Before the sun comes up early and make your way to one of the sunrise viewing platforms where you can enjoy one of the best sunrises you’ll ever see (weather permitting).
Side note: When walking to the viewing platforms for the sunrise you will definitely need a flashlight. It is dark over there and there are no communal lights to light the path for you. There is no way that you would find your way to the viewing platform without some form of light.
After checking out the sunrise go to as many sightseeing spots as you can. Da Zhai is truly an amazing area to explore and you’ll enjoy every second of being there. Once you return to your lodging, speak with the owner and ask him to help you book one night for a hostel in Ping An. Then go to bed early to get as much sleep as possible for Day 3. You’ll need it.
Day 3: Wake up early again (I know you’ve got to be driven or a bit of a morning person to go by this plan), and start your trek from Da Zhai to Ping An. There is a route that connects the two villages. It is a long walk that will take approximately 8 hours (take enough food and water), I am told that the locals can make the journey in about 6 hours but I am sure that they won’t stop to take pictures of the scenery and enjoy the views. I also recommend taking all of your stuff and checking out before starting this trek (pack light to go the rice terraces, think backpacking). I have not been on this trek before which is why I can’t provide any pictures from it, nonetheless everyone that I have talked to that has done this trek has recommended it and I haven’t heard any bad feedback from it other than it being long. The sights that you’ll see here will well outweigh any of the difficulties that you encounter. Once you get to Ping An drop your stuff off and find a place to view the sunset.
Day 4: This is the last day that you’ll be staying at the rice terraces, so enjoy it. You can wake up early and see the sunset again or sleep in and relax a little bit. You should know though that you will only have until 12pm to explore the rice terraces of Ping An though.
IMPORTANT: The last bus from the rice terraces is scheduled to leave at 12pm. So that means you will have to have all of your stuff packed and ready, check out and make your way to the pick-up point before 12pm. That doesn’t give you a lot of time in Ping An.
That is my 4 day/3-night plan for getting the most out of the rice terraces. As you can see there isn’t much down time where you can be bored while at the rice terraces. If, I could redo my trip to the rice terraces I would’ve without a doubt done this 4-day plan.
International Kev 